Nokia 8 Sirocco hands-on: High-end Android One

Nokia just unveiled a number of new devices at MWC 2018, bringing the company back into the modern landscape with a slew of new Android devices. From the ultra-low-end reboot of the Nokia 8110 to the mid-tier flagship Nokia 7 Plus, the company is certainly starting its year off right.

The star of the show, however, is the brand-new Nokia 8 Sirocco. The company is bringing the iconic brand name back with a bang.

Editor's Pick

Hands-on with Nokia’s new lineup from MWC 2018

HMD Global had a great start with their Nokia line up last year, and it looks like they are keen not to lose any of that momentum. At MWC, the company is announcing a line …

The glass-and-steel body curves around the sides of the device to create a sharp edge that’s more stylish than functional. It’s pretty difficult to hold since the edges are so sharp. Still, the Nokia 8 Sirocco looks like a piece of art.

While the phone does come with extra features like wireless charging and an IP67 water resistance rating, Nokia did leave out a few things that some users might not like. There’s no 3.5 mm headphone jack, and it comes with last year’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor.

The rest of the specs are as high-end as the design. This phone features 6 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage, and a 5.5-inch Quad HD pOLED display that looks absolutely stunning. This is a 16:9 aspect ratio display, so it’s shorter and squatter than most of the other phones on the market. However, colors are bright and vivid, and in our opinion the display looks better than just about any 2017 flagship.

This display looks better than just about any display on a 2017 flagship.

The dual-camera setup on the back, made by Zeiss optics, features 12 and 13 MP sensors. We haven’t had enough time to test the camera in full, but the 2X optical zoom on the second camera shows that the company is serious about optical quality at multiple zoom ranges.

Hardware only tells part of the story though, and a huge feature of this device is the fact that it is running Android One. This is the cleanest version of Android available on the market right now — even cleaner than Google’s Pixel phones. The Sirocco only has 18 apps installed out of the box. Nokia said that simplicity was one the core aspects of it’s design, and this is very evident in the design of the device.

This is the certainly highest-end Android One device on the market. While the Nexus program as we know it is no more, this is the next best thing.

At €749, the Nokia 8 Sirocco is one of the most expensive Android One devices on the market. With the high-end specs, cutting edge design, and sparkling clean version of Android, this is a phone we’ve all decided we are very, very interested in.

Look for the device when it launches in April of this year, and stay tuned for our full review coming soon.